Would love to do Atlantic crossing

[purplerobbie]

I would love to do an Atlantic crossing but what is the reality?

Have spent countless hours watching YouTube videos of people crossing it looks like the hardest part is the boredom?

But what is the reality?

 

[alant]

I would love to do an Atlantic crossing but what is the reality?

Have spent countless hours watching YouTube videos of people crossing it looks like the hardest part is the boredom?

But what is the reality?

If on a watch system, looking for your next sleep period, can concentrate your mind.

 

[typhoonNige]

The reality when we crossed in Feb /March this year from Cape Verde to Grenada was that much of the route was blanketed in floating Sargasso weed. Much time was spent clearing rudder, prop and towed generator, often at every watch change (3 hourly). Hopefully this will clear soon but in the meantime fishing anywhere in the Windwards is also greatly affected and I'm told the effects on the local fishermen in Barbados are serious. Beaches on the east side of the islands have tons of the stuff building up too.

 

[prv]

If on a watch system, looking for your next sleep period, can concentrate your mind.

Never done any ocean sailing in yachts, though I'd like to. But I've spent two or three weeks at a time in a 3-watch system on square riggers, and after a couple of days to adjust I didn't feel sleep-deprived. Is it so different in a yacht?

Pete

 

[typhoonNige]

Never done any ocean sailing in yachts, though I'd like to. But I've spent two or three weeks at a time in a 3-watch system on square riggers, and after a couple of days to adjust I didn't feel sleep-deprived. Is it so different in a yacht?

Pete

It takes 3-4 days for the two of us to adjust, but 3 on / 3 off is a bit harder than the 4 and 8 of a 3-watch system!

 

[prv]

It takes 3-4 days for the two of us to adjust, but 3 on / 3 off is a bit harder than the 4 and 8 of a 3-watch system!

Indeed yes, I don't think I'd like to do a half-and-half pattern for any length of time.

Pete

 

[KellysEye]

>it looks like the hardest part is the boredom?

Yes that's true. We played I Spy but you soon run out of things. So we started waving at waves, small waves got small waves, big waves got big waves etc. I perfected the Mohican Moosehead wave, waving my fingers with both hands in the middle of my head, you can see how desperate we were. Strangely waves are interesting to watch no wave comes from the same direction and none are the exactly the same size, I used to watch them for hours. The other thing is take lots of books to read. The whole point though is the arrival, it's serious party time, so serious that when you go to bed you won't go to sleep you will pass out as your head hits the pillow. Waking up in the morning is bliss, the boat is not moving, and the partying starts again. This can run for days if not weeks until you move somewhere else. There you will probably meet some boats you know and the partying starts again. Bottom line is the boredom is worth it.

 

[TQA]

When the 3 am squall comes through with 40 knots + torrential rain and 40 degree wind shifts you will wish for boring.

I think the bit from the Canaries to the Carib is mostly easy sailing with the odd squalls, I have never had radar so relied on my innate spidy sense.

Getting from Spain/Portugal out to the Canaries can be 'interesting'.

 

[Peroo]

We never got bored...far too many things to do and see and photograph and blog and watch....and........we never got bored! Amazing trips off-shore, there and back and wouldn't have missed them for the world - the fish, the whales, the birds, the dolphins, the ships, the submarines, the jellyfish, the clouds, the flying fish, trolling, swimming, the squalls, the grib files, the SSB, AIS, radar, games of chess and scrabble, e-mails, identifying floating things, the odd strange thing that makes you begin to wonder about your sanity such as voices from nowhere...no.......you'll never be bored crossing the Atlantic.

 

[Toutvabien]

I think that the preparation was the hardest bit, equipping boat and crew for a variety of possibilities and not knowing which elements would be called on when. Sometimes a bit boring, what are we going to do today?? I know we will go sailing!

Well worth it in my opinion and the time and space to talk was special.

 

[rivonia]

I well remember in 1992!!! My wife and I set sail for the very first time from Cape town for the caribbean. What an exiting adventure that was. Our longest time at sea without landing/stopping was 32 days. We never got bored NEVER. Becalmed in the doldrums for two solid days. Still no boredom. We started of with the classic four on and four off watches. That soon changed to whoever of us who was on watch as soon as that person felt tired wake the other up make a cuppa hand over and that was it. Worked great for us. Planning the food was a big plan. My wife made menu's for a week then a month. Multiplied all the ingredients required by three. Then we had three months stock on board. I could go on and on but you might all get bored, so i will stop there.

Only thing to say is Do IT!

 

[temptress]

We never got bored...far too many things to do and see and photograph and blog and watch....and........we never got bored! Amazing trips off-shore, there and back and wouldn't have missed them for the world - the fish, the whales, the birds, the dolphins, the ships, the submarines, the jellyfish, the clouds, the flying fish, trolling, swimming, the squalls, the grib files, the SSB, AIS, radar, games of chess and scrabble, e-mails, identifying floating things, the odd strange thing that makes you begin to wonder about your sanity such as voices from nowhere...no.......you'll never be bored crossing the Atlantic.

++1

SWMBO and I love ocean passages it the 2 to 3 day trips in coastal waters that take it out of us. Far to much to do to get bored - depends if you enjoy sailing or you are there for the arrival.......

 

[alant]

Never done any ocean sailing in yachts, though I'd like to. But I've spent two or three weeks at a time in a 3-watch system on square riggers, and after a couple of days to adjust I didn't feel sleep-deprived. Is it so different in a yacht?

Pete

Depends on the watch system.

 

[capnsensible]

My wife has done 4 transatlantics with me and Ive done a total of 10. Neither of us has ever been bored!!

 

[Poignard]

(...) it looks like the hardest part is the boredom?

But what is the reality?

It is.

 

[affinite]

My wife has done 4 transatlantics with me and Ive done a total of 10. Neither of us has ever been bored!!

Who kept you from being bored on the other 6 ?

 

[Neil_Y]

Never bored, the nice thing was having time to keep the boat completely sorted, be able to do some astro nav, as well as making some really nice food washed down with equally nice Spanish wines bought on route.

We did get a bit tired with just two of us and 3 on 3 off, four up it was much easier and 7 up in a 38' was a bit crowded!

Plan for food worked out really well, decide how many days you cater for and then each day you have two portions of carbs, two of veg's, and two of protien, one sweet and two snacks (that became starters or mid morning snacks) Enough flour yeast for a loaf of bread every other day or for pizza bases. We shopped for lots of different carbs/veg/protien/sweet just making sure we had enough of each then when it was time to cook as long as you just took the portions planned you could use any carb/protien/veg/sweet combination to make up a new dish. One trip we started the voyage with a full three course roast chicken dinner with all the trimmings as we sailed away from the Canaries.

 

[capnsensible]

Who kept you from being bored on the other 6 ?

Boats have many varied and devious ways of creating things for you to mend. :nonchalance:

 

[alant]

Boats have many varied and devious ways of creating things for you to mend. :nonchalance:

Not sure he had boaty bits in mind

 

[AndrewB]

Five major ocean crossings, SWMBO said she was getting bored by the last but I never did. Certainly not at all on the first. I miss it now.

We did 3 hour watches by day, 5 hours by night. That leaves a 2 hour shared watch in early evening which was about the only time we saw one another!